


a cup of coffee for your head

by orphan_account



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Blond Eddie Kaspbrak, Coming Out, Genderfluid Character, Reddie, Song: Coffee (beabadoobee), Songfic, genderfluid richie tozier, half-filipino richie tozier, happy birthday muji :DDD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:41:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23564704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: “Don’t stay awake for too long, Rich.”or: college roommates eddie kaspbrak and richie tozier, with a hint of budding romance and genderfluidity
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 4
Kudos: 34





	a cup of coffee for your head

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pusa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pusa/gifts).



> haiii im back with another genderfluid richie fic!!!!!! genderfluid richie is something so personal to me....AND he's half-filipino in this too which doubles the personalness.. thats not a word But anway! i wrote this in a rush because i wanted to post it in time for muji's birthday but its currently 3:30am rn i missed it... though i would like 2 think hey!! its probably still muji's bday in another country rn yeah? maybe!
> 
> anyways enjoy college roommates reddie yay

_Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

_Sigh._

_Tap._

_Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

_Click._

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

Those were the sounds Eddie would usually hear as he would drift off to sleep after a long day of studying and working. Similarly, those were the sounds Eddie would usually hear as soon as he would wake from his slumber.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

“Ugh,” a voice groaned out from outside his slightly opened bedroom door. It was Richie, his roommate.

Eddie walked into the living room as quietly as he could, careful not to disturb his roommate’s state of mind. He knew that whatever Richie was working on was important. Richie was on his fourth year of college, and Eddie could only imagine everything he must need to do in order to finish the semester. Though they were the same age, Richie was quite smart and very hardworking. He studied 10th grade during one summer and enrolled for 11th the following school year.

Eddie stepped into the kitchen and opened the white cabinet above him, reaching for his favorite mug from his best friend, Stanley. He got it as a Christmas present from him two years ago. Stanley finally made him something after two years of learning how to throw a pot.

Eddie hummed a soft tune. It wasn’t any song in particular. It was just him humming as he made himself a cup of chamomile tea to help him fall back asleep. Eddie checked the clock behind him, placed on a wall above and in between his and Richie’s work desks.

 _2:27am._ He glanced at Richie, and then back at the clock before turning around to resume his tea making.

Richie yawned.

Eddie felt bad. Richie probably hasn’t gotten a proper amount of sleep in a while now. He turned around to look at him again. Richie was stretching his back before resuming to work again. Eddie walked towards him with his mug in his left hand. Without a word, he placed a coaster on Richie’s desk before placing the mug carefully on top of it.

Richie looked up at him. Eddie’s blond, wavy hair was puffy, with some patches of hair sticking out in different directions. His dark brown roots were peeking through a little, and his dark grey sweater enveloped his body quite loosely. It was clear to Richie that his roommate had just woken up from his slumber. He checked the time on his laptop, widening his eyes as he realized yet again how late he was working.

“What’s this, Eds?” Richie looked at the mug placed on his desk, subtly sniffing to get a whiff of its contents.

Eddie smiled, running a hand through his messy hair to scratch it. “Tea. Chamomile tea.”

Richie nodded in understanding, forming an ‘o’ with his mouth. “Thanks, Eds,” he smiled gratefully, removing his glasses and placing it on top of his curly hair before picking the mug up to take a sip. “Ah, that’s really warm,” he breathed in, placing the mug back down.

Eddie watched him the whole time, scrunching his eyebrows in concern. Richie’s under eyes looked extremely dark, now that Eddie could see them up close and without the barrier that blocked his eyes a little, which were in the shape of Richie’s glasses. As much as he understood how much Richie needed to stay up and work, Eddie knew he had to rest at some point.

“That should help you calm down, and in a while, it should help you sleep too,” Eddie explained. He tucked his hands behind him and nodded to Richie before proceeding to turn around and head back to his room. But before he could take a step towards it, Richie frowned and replied to him.

“Oh, um, thanks, but I can’t sleep yet. I need to finish this chapter before my class tomorrow.”

Eddie stopped in his tracks and turned back to Richie. “Oh. What time is your class?”

“At ten,” Richie responded without looking up from his laptop. “I dropped out from my research group, so I really need to finish this.”

Eddie’s eyes widened in shock. “Why did you do that?” He knew Richie preferred to do things alone, but this was a big deal. It would be twice as hard to do, now that he didn’t have people to contribute with him.

“They weren’t doing their part, so I asked our professor if I could do it on my own,” Richie’s voice seemed tense, as if he remembered things that upset him a lot. “I don’t want to fail.” His voice almost cracked.

Eddie felt bad. Really bad. He had experienced freeloader groupmates in his life, yes, but that was back in highschool. He couldn’t imagine having to do everything on his own in such a short period of time. Eddie felt bad that Richie had to go through this; he felt sad that Richie may potentially destroy himself by continuing to do it like this; he felt mad that Richie had such jackass groupmates.

“I know I’m only in my third year, but maybe I can help,” Eddie offered.

Richie smiled softly. “It’s okay, Eds. I can do it.”

“I know you can. I’ve seen you do it tons of times. But I still want to help, please?” he almost begged. Almost. He didn’t even know why he was so keen on helping Richie, but he wanted to. Perhaps he just pitied him. He’s not sure.

Richie contemplated. It’s not that he was full of pride, or that his ego was too big. He was just embarrassed. He didn’t really see Eddie as someone in his close circle of friends. Sure, they lived together, but they didn’t really interact that much. At best, Richie would think they were just good friends.

But seeing as though he was in his fourth year, it wouldn’t hurt to get a little help, right? He knew Eddie was smart, and that he was reliable and organized. The perfect groupmate, if you will. In Richie’s opinion, at least.

Eddie had been standing there for a good three minutes as Richie continued to think about his offer. Before Richie even knew it, Eddie grabbed his own desk chair and looked through Richie’s Word document, breezing through his paper and jotting down notes. As soon as Richie realized what he was doing, he slightly jumped from his seat, startled by their closeness, and by what Eddie was doing. Richie didn’t stop him though. He was at a loss.

As Eddie finished what he was writing, he handed the piece of paper to Richie and sat back on his chair. “There, I made a checklist of little things you need to accomplish to be able to finish everything.”

Richie read its contents. “Why?”

“Because, you shouldn’t do it all in one go. You’ll never be able to feel even the slightest sense of accomplishment until you finish the whole thing. And even then, you might not be completely satisfied,” Eddie explained. He liked slicing his goals into smaller ones. It was his way to feel productive and to stay motivated.

Richie didn’t know what to say. “See how your task looks easier now overall? It’s because you put a bunch of small tasks together to form a goal,” his roommate tried to convince him, and if Richie were being honest, it was working. His task did seem a lot easier now.

Eddie glanced at the clock once again. It was almost 3am now. He was feeling quite tired. “I’m sorry if I crossed a line. I just wanted to help, and I get that you have the right to refuse it,” he stood up to leave, but Richie grabbed his arm.

“Thank you,” he said in a soft voice. He seemed tired, too. “Thank you, Eddie. It means a lot to me.”

Eddie smiled as wide as he could, through his sleepiness and the feeling of his body being extra heavy due to his tiredness. “It’s nothing. But please, you need to rest too, okay? Don’t overwork yourself.”

“I know.”

“Since I’ve given you that,” he pointed at the paper Richie was holding. “It’ll probably get a lot easier from now on, I hope. So go to bed soon, okay?” Eddie was too tired to convince him to go to bed, but he tried nonetheless.

“Yeah, okay. In a few,” Richie got up to hug Eddie, which startled the blond boy. “Thank you again, Eds.”

“No- no problem,” he stuttered, shocked by Richie’s action of gratitude. They were good friends, yes, but this was the first time that they had hugged. He tried to shake it off. “Um, anyway, head to bed soon. I wake up early all the time for my morning routine, so I could wake you up if you want me to, I promise. It’s so you can have time to finish that chapter before your class tomorrow. Also, you won’t have to rush to class,” he offered.

“That would be really nice of you, Eddie. Thank you a million times,” Richie smiled at him and took the mug on his desk once again, taking a larger sip this time. He felt a lot calmer than he did fifteen minutes ago.

Eddie was content with that, and before finally leaving, he replies, “Don’t stay awake for too long, Rich.” He ruffled Richie’s hair, which startles himself and wakes him up. He had never done that before, and he wasn’t sure if he should have done that. He slowly lifts his hand up and away from Richie’s hair, and quickly enters his bedroom without saying another word.

Richie smiled to himself as he watched him go before turning back to his laptop and his warm tea.

\--

The warm sun rested on Eddie’s face, as if it were telling him: _Wake up Eddie! Wake up!_

Eddie groaned, trying to shield his eyes from the bright light. He sat on his bed and stretched his arms as he yawned. Before he could prepare for his morning routine, he remembered what he told Richie the night before. He checked his phone for the time. 6:13am. He felt proud of himself. He woke up before his alarm again.

Feeling positive by the start of his day, he got up and headed to the bathroom that he shares with Richie to pee, and to gargle mouthwash. As he did so, he mentally noted the things he had to do for the day, aside from attending class and his part-time job, of course.

  1. Meditate for 15 minutes
  2. Eat breakfast
  3. Take vitamins
  4. Review for calculus quiz
  5. Take Bill’s night shift



After, he went to prepare breakfast, making sure to make extra for Richie. He boiled water and poured the oats in until it had a nice, thick consistency. Placing them in two, white ceramic bowls that he purchased from Stan, he added frozen strawberries and bananas to his own. He wasn’t sure what Richie liked to put in his oatmeal, or if he even liked putting anything in it at all, so he just laid out the strawberries, bananas, and mangoes out for his roommate. Absentmindedly remembering how Richie had said that mangoes were one of his favorite snacks, since he had mentioned once that he grew up eating them in the Philippines.

Eddie walks towards Richie’s bedroom door, carefully turning the doorknob so as not to startle him. He tried not to drag his indoor slippers across the hardwood floor either.

Richie’s room wasn’t tidy like Eddie’s, but it wasn’t extremely messy either. It was slightly cluttered, with books laid out by his nightstands, and some miscellaneous things put away sloppily in his opened closet.

“Richie?” He called out in a low voice, still trying not to startle him. He stepped closer to his roommate’s bed. His sheets were orange, and he had a thick, fluffy blanket that covered him up to his neck. He looked warm and snug, and Eddie almost refrained himself from waking him up. Almost.

Eddie attempted to lightly shake Richie from his sleep, mentally cringing at himself as the latter looked like he needed to more rest. But Eddie knew he had to wake him. He promised. “Richie, wake up,” he shook him harder this time. Richie groaned.

“Fifteen more minutes, please,” Richie pleaded, peeking at Eddie through his squinted eyes. Eddie paused, thinking whether he should allow it or not. He could always reheat the oatmeal, right?

“Promise you’ll wake up after fifteen minutes?” Eddie tried to make sure. Richie nodded, confirming that he would, before turning to face the other side of his bed for more sleep. Eddie agreed, leaving Richie’s room to start with his meditation. On the way out, he made a mental note to bring in thumbtacks to Richie’s room later, as he saw Richie’s taped up flag on the wall starting to peel off. Eddie wasn’t quite sure what the flag meant, though.

\--

As Eddie heated the oatmeal up, he began heading towards Richie’s room, just as Richie came out of his door with a large shirt on that covered the shorts he was wearing. Eddie stopped in his tracks, startled by him and his sudden appearance. Richie wasn’t wearing his glasses, so his eyes seemed a lot smaller that Eddie was used to seeing. His curls were frizzy and tangled up, but it made Richie look innocent and fragile. He stood differently today; Eddie noticed. But he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what about him was different.

“Good morning, Eddie,” he spoke softly. It was different from how he had ever spoken to him, but then again, they didn’t really speak to each other enough for him to notice what changed. But it was enough for Eddie to realize something did.

“G-good morning. I was just about to wake you again,” Eddie sputtered, startled by Richie’s demeanor. He shifted his weight onto his other foot, contemplating on what to say next. “I… made breakfast.”

“Oh. Thank you. I was embarrassed earlier when you first came. But anyway, have you eaten yet, Eddie?” his cheeks tinted pink. He bowed his head down slightly in embarrassment.

“I haven’t, no. I wanted to eat with you,” Eddie scratched his head and turned to head to their kitchen island, where he prepared their food. He took the bowls from the microwave and placed it on the counter. “I wasn’t sure what you like in your oatmeal, so I brought the strawberries, bananas, and mangoes out for you.”

Richie smiled gratefully. Eddie thought he looked beautiful like that. Would he get offended if he said so? He wasn’t sure. “I love mangoes,” he approached Eddie, taking a seat beside him. He crossed his leg over the other.

“I know. I see you eat them a lot. I know it reminds you of home,” Eddie says pointedly, spooning a mouthful of oatmeal and stuffing it in his mouth. It was warm.

Richie was touched. He gently placed a hand on top of Eddie’s. “Thank you.”

Eddie furrowed his eyebrows, pondering on how to say what he wanted to say next. “You know Rich, you seem different today. In a good way,” he speculated. “You seem more laid back and touchy. I noticed it a little last night, but I brushed it off.”

Richie looked startled. Shocked, even. “W-what do you mean?” He put his hand away. He looked upset.

No.

He looked scared.

“I’m not sure about what it means, Richie. I just—I think… I think you look beautiful.” Eddie held his breath. He wasn’t sure how Richie would react to what he just said. He mentally beat himself up. God, why was he so stupid?

Richie looked at Eddie. He stared at him so hard, Eddie braced himself for the worst. Richie looked into his eyes like he was searching for something. He furrowed his eyebrows and searched. Perhaps he was searching for sincerity? Intent? Eddie was itching to know what was to happen next.

Well, he was itching to know, but he wasn’t ready. Richie’s eyes welled up, and tears started spilling down in buckets. Eddie panicked, not sure what to do with the current situation. Was he upset? Should he console him? He wasn’t sure. He was never sure when it came to Richie.

Eddie placed a hand on his shoulder. He stayed silent for a while, trying to find the words to say; hoping not to make the situation worse. “Did… did what I said offend you? I’m sorry,” he tried to say, but he felt too embarrassed to form the right words. He got up to give Richie some space.

“No. I’m just happy,” Richie wept. “And grateful.”

Eddie was confused, but he sat back down. He couldn’t speak. Richie, through his tears, started eating his breakfast again, and Eddie followed suit. Oh, what was a boy to do?

As he finished his meal, Eddie got up to bring his dishes to the sink to wash, and after he did, he took the box of thumbtacks out from his pocket and placed it beside Richie. By then, the boy had stopped crying and looked up at Eddie with curiosity. His eyes were painfully red and puffy. Eddie winced. He didn’t like seeing Richie like that at all.

“Um… Use this instead of tape for the flag in your room,” Eddie explained in a very small voice. Richie almost couldn’t hear him properly. “I saw it falling off earlier, so…”

Richie looked down at his meal. “Thank you.”

Eddie headed towards his room. He hated the awkward silence and tension in the room.

“You’re probably unaware of it, but you…me feel accepted… a genderfluid…,” Richie mumbled. Eddie didn’t hear his complete sentence, but he understood.

Eddie paused mid-way into his room. “I’m really, really, truly happy for you, Richie.”

As soon as Eddie entered his room, he quickly sat on his bed and took out his phone, entering the word _genderfluid_ on Google. He wanted to know everything about what he had just discovered from his roommate. He didn’t want to ever make Richie feel uncomfortable or unsafe.

\--

An hour and a half later, after Eddie had checked off three items in his to do list, he came out of his room, fresh out of the shower after he had reviewed for his math quiz. Richie was sitting at his work desk again, typing away on his laptop.

_Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

Eddie still felt awkward, but he tried his best to act normal. Wanting to check off another item from his to do list, he headed to the kitchen to grab some chewable Vitamin C tablets and his vitamin gummy bears. He didn’t really know if they worked or anything, but he took them anyway. They were delicious. He took a red gummy bear and a tablet, placing it on a saucer. He approached Richie’s desk and cleared his throat. “You should take these. They’re really good for you, and they’ll help with your immune system.”

Richie stopped typing and looked at Eddie. “Thank you, Eddie,” he said shyly, taking the gummy bear and popping it into his mouth. He was embarrassed that all he had been saying so far had only been thank yous. “I’ve checked off a few of the tasks you wrote last night for me. It really helped.”

“Really? I’m glad,” Eddie smiled, taking a seat beside Richie. His blond hair was damp and cold, and a few drops of water from it had fallen on Richie’s knee. “Sorry,” he murmured as soon as he’d noticed.

“It’s okay. But anyway, I’m just going to type out the references that I used in this chapter, and then I’ll be done for the day,” Richie informed him and checked his laptop again for the time. 8:32am. “Man, I’m still tired,” he sighed, pushing his glasses up to the bridge of his nose.

Eddie felt bad again, but he knew Richie can’t go back to sleep now. “Don’t go to bed, Rich. You might get a lot more tired by the afternoon if you do. If you want, I could brew you a cup of coffee.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to. I can do it myself.”

Eddie placed a hand on his shoulder again. “I want to,” he got up to prepare the coffee, his slippers dragging onto the floor. Richie liked that sound. “I’ll get you up and going, Richie.”

Richie felt like he was going to overheat. Eddie treated him so good, he was so lucky to have him as a roommate. He imagined if Eddie treated others the same way too.

“By the way,” Eddie called out from the kitchen. They weren’t too far from each other. Their unit wasn’t that huge, anyway. “What pronouns do you use?”

Richie grinned. What did he do to deserve Eddie? He was so kind and thoughtful. He always had been, but Richie only really noticed now. His attention was on Eddie completely now, so he turned to face him. “I still go by he and him, as it’s what I’m used to, but I really don’t mind they and them or she and her. I might start asking people to start using they and them soon though, but I’m still thinking about it.”

The coffee started brewing in the coffee machine. The rich scent of caffeine wafted into the air brought a sense of comfort to Richie. Eddie turned around to face him, too. “I see. I think that’s really cool, Richie,” they smiled at each other. “If you want, I can use they and them for you at home, so you can get a feel of it before making up your mind.”

Richie raised their eyebrows in awe. “Really, Eddie? You’d do that?” They sounded like a little kid, and Eddie thought it was so sweet and endearing.

“Of course, Richie. If it makes you happy,” Eddie grinned. He knew it probably meant a lot to Richie. He would gladly help a friend. Always.

Granted, Eddie was, in the slightest, attracted to them. He had always found Richie to be very interesting and attractive. But he wasn’t doing this in hopes of them developing feelings for him or something. No. He was doing this for the sole purpose of making them feel as safe and accepted in their own home. Or at least, house. Eddie knew Richie’s home was in the Philippines, with their mom.

Richie got up and walked towards Eddie. Their face displayed nothing but gratefulness, joy, and maybe… relief? Eddie wasn’t sure if he saw it right. Richie hugged Eddie extremely tight. They were similar in height, and perhaps it was just a result of Eddie leaning onto the kitchen counter, but Richie somehow managed to bury their face into the crook of Eddie’s neck.

Eddie liked it. He liked it a lot. They smelled like perfume. Really sweet perfume. Eddie liked that. Eddie liked them. That, he was sure of.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading!!! and muji, if youre reading this rn, happiest birthday. i love you with all my heart.


End file.
